WITH MUGSHOT IN PHOTOS The John M. Ashbrook

Joe Dill Published: October 24, 2006 12:00 AM

WITH MUGSHOT IN PHOTOSThe John M. Ashbrook Center for Public Affairs at Ashland University will host a colloquium titled Questioning Keats: An Introduction to Applied Hermeneutics. The event, which is free and open to the public, is 3 p.m. on Nov. 10 in the Ashbrook Center, located on the eighth floor of the AU Library.Dr. Russell Weaver, associate professor of English at Ashland University, will present the colloquium from his new book.Through a discussion of Heidegger, Gadamer and Ricoeur, Weavers book poses a new way of approaching textual analysis and critiques standard interpretations of John Keats' Ode to a Nightingale. Weaver demonstrates how exploring rather than merely assuming the meaning of words in the text can open a pathway to the richness of their meaning.The book is in some ways a critique of the way the profession does literary criticism, Weaver said.Weaver says the meaning of textual words ostensibly being analyzed has merely been assumed, missing the richness of the meaning. The book was written for college English teachers, but it could be understood by anyone who has an interest in literary criticism, Weaver said. I wrote about philosophy in a way that anyone could understand.Weaver said the book is a result of his classroom work since he teaches a variety of literature courses at AU. My teaching makes my scholarship possible, he said. My teaching is the focus of my life. My scholarship stems from that.His research interests include the relation between theory and practice in literary criticism, 19th century British literature and Shakespeare. Weaver holds a bachelor of arts degree in English from Tulane University, and both a master of arts degree and Ph.D. in English from the University of Chicago.Weavers book is part of the Studies in 19th Century British Literature series published by Peter Lang. Questioning Keats: An Introduction to Applied Hermeneutics is available through the AU Bookstore or internet book sellers.